Democratic Senate whip Dick Durbin has told THE WEEKLY STANDARD that he is formulating an amendment that will criticize the Trump administration for failing to mention Jews in a recent statement marking Holocaust Remembrance Day. Durbin plans to add the language to a Senate measure aimed at countering an anti-Israel resolution passed by the United Nations Security Council late last year.
The Illinois senator’s effort is endangering a congressional push to respond to the U.N. resolution and other anti-Israel moves at the U.N., according to pro-Israel groups that spoke to TWS. The U.N. resolution, which passed in December with an abstention from the Obama administration, drew criticism from lawmakers on both sides of the aisle, who blasted it as a one-sided attack on Israel that undermines direct peace negotiations. The House of Representatives passed a measure in January condemning the resolution with 342 votes, while a similar Senate measure, which has 78 co-sponsors, is being held up.
